Direct Marketers Spend $350K To Woo Government

The Direct Marketing Association spent $350,000 in the first half of 2007 to lobby the federal government, according to a disclosure form. The group's members include Google, IBM and Home Depot.

The group lobbied on legislation involving consumer privacy and protection, the postal system and a bill to make the moratorium on Internet access taxes permanent, according to a form posted online Aug. 6 by the Senate's public records office, the Associated Press reports.

In addition to Congress, the association lobbied the Treasury Department, Federal Communications Commission, Federal Trade Commission and the Commerce Department.